Gazing at the three enormous yet old Sky Bison, I and the rest of the students watched as Monk, Gyatso, Pasang, and Tachi floated down onto their backs and landed on the large saddle while gazing down at us.
"There are roughly 60 of you, so this is perfect; nine of you shall ride with us while the others shall fly using their gliders; once we rest, we shall switch." Stated Pasang lightly as he gazed at the students, who all talked amongst themselves before quickly choosing twenty-seven people in total to be carried on the three Sky Bison.
"The Eastern Air Temple is the closest Air Temple to us, but it'll still require a few weeks of travel and the occasional rest, so be prepared young ones." Said Gyatso as he gazed at all the students before gently rubbing his Sky Bison, causing to roar lightly while flapping his massive tail, stirring up powerful gusts of wind.
With Monk Gyatso's Sky Bison slowly being lifted into the air, both Monk Pasang and Monk Tachi's Sky Bisson followed right after as they flapped their mighty tails and flew through the sky, heading northeast toward the Eastern Sky Temple. Quickly after them, the students all began to shift their bo-staffs into gliders before leaping off the edge and taking to the sky with a gust of wind that kept them floating, leaving just me alone.
Clutching my bo-staff, I pressed a little button on the side, causing the four flaps to open on either side of the bo-staff now turned glider before running towards the edge and leaping off the side, holding the glider overhead with my feet propped up from the back, keeping me aerodynamic, I dived downwards towards the numerous jagged spikes at the very base of the mountain the Southern Air Temple was built on.
Just before I collided with the numerous spikes ready to impale, I slightly lifted my head, causing a gust of strong wind to push against the four flaps, lifting me high into the air after evading death; ascending higher and higher, I eventually passed the clouds and saw the group far off in the distance, prompting me to surge even more wind to increase my speed further, and within a matter of a few minutes, I had regrouped with everyone, though I mainly stayed in the back.
We flew through the air for quite some time, and during that time, a few students got a bit daring and tried to perform various stunts such as holding onto their gliders with one hand, doing loops and barrel-rolls, and some even attempting to turn the glider into a surfboard, and while most were smart enough to not go past their limits, others weren't nearly as smart.
Standing atop my glider as if it were a surfboard, I held onto the arm of one of my fellow brothers, who was a little too stupid and attempted to do a loop and a barrel roll simultaneously; now, he is hanging from my arm.
"Be more careful next time, brother." Said Aang lightly with a blank look as he handed the student his glider, causing him to laugh awkwardly while blushing before flying through the sky.
Shaking my head, I slowed down and returned to the back of the group while the three Elders gave me a nod of appreciation, which I reciprocated with a nod as well.
'Hmm, well, while this is a pleasant journey, it's a lot of wasted time with not much to do; I suppose I could practice; it'll just be slightly difficult doing so on my bo-staff, but that'll be training in its own right.' Mused Aang softly as he gazed at the beautiful sky before lightly lowering his stance while raising his hand, performing the thirty-six basic stances of Baguazhang.
I know the thirty-six basic stances like the back of my hand, but before every training session, I always perform all of the stances I've mastered, starting from the thirty-six basic stances to the intermediate stances, then Advanced, and finally, Master Stances. Yes, in these past three years, I've gone from intermediate to Master; I would've been here much quicker, but in the first three years, I was required to train mostly in secret because of Monk Gyatso, but ever since that time I picked out four toys three years ago, he no longer restricted my training, allowing me to fully train to my heart's content.
Thanks to that, I would spend hours everyday training, and my mastery of air bending grew by leaps and bounds; even now, I'm still growing extremely fast, though it's slowed down somewhat given that I'm now learning harder and more complicated stances and techniques. However, I'm confident before I turn ten, I'll be roughly on the same level as Monk Gyatso; well, raw strength-wise, at least. Even if my prodigious talent allows me to match him, my experience is still shallow compared to his, so I wouldn't dare call myself his equal in air bending.
"All in due time, Aang. One step at a time." Muttered Aang softly as he suddenly raised his hands, and with a calm disposition, he began slicing through the air in specific movements, almost like he was performing a dance move while mighty gusts of winds erupted in all directions, garnering the attention of everyone.
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"Alright, everyone, we shall take an hour's break and then continue until nightfall." Stated Pasang lightly as he, Tashi, Gyatso, and the numerous students landed in a large clearing.
Softly landing on the ground beside everyone else, I holstered my bo-staff on my back and looked around before ultimately deciding to do a little journey around the forest.
"Also, remember, don't stray too far!" Said Tashi sternly as he eyed the numerous students before feeding his exhausted Sky Bison, Gyatso, and Pasang doing the same.
Entering the dense forest that was full of life, I heeded Monk Tashi's advice and didn't intend to stray too far, but I did explore farther than most as I enjoyed the peace and silence that calm with being alone, not to mention the sound of the forest was nearly as soothing as the sound of the wind.
"Hmm, are these edible? I'm a little hungry." Mused Aang lightly as he glanced at a bush full of red berries, causing him to take one and intently inspect it.
While I was looking at the red berry, I saw a greyish lemur suddenly drop down from a tree and land in the bush, only to quickly scurry away after carrying several berries in his mouth, causing me to toss the berry in my mouth as well.
"A little sour, but beggars aren't choosers." Muttered AAng lightly as he picked numerous more fruits before continuing with his journey while eating them.
I continued to enjoy the sights of the forest as it was my first time being so far away from the Southern Air Temple, and I wished to relish it; however, along the way, I happened to encounter a large Badgermole emerge from the ground, causing me to stop as we silently stared at each other.
'A Badgermole? We must be within the Earth Kingdom.' Mused Aang lightly as he gazed upon the large Badgermole, only for it to ignore him and continue digging.
While I found such a sighting rare and a lucky encounter, it was unfortunate I was with a large group, as I would've loved to use this chance to possibly learn from them; after all, to my understanding, the greatest earthbender had learned from them.
"Well, now I know who my teachers will be when I learn earth bending, but must I also blind myself like Toph?" Muttered Aang with a faint frown as he observed the Badgermole, only to shake his head and turn around, causing it to suddenly stop and look at him.
Despite my desire to so, I held back and didn't start practicing my earth bending. I would save it for later, and for the remainder of the time, I continued to walk around the forest, taking in its beauty, encountering another Badgermole in the process, but unlike the other one, this one seemed to be a little more territorial.
Once an hour was nearing, I returned back to the clearing, where everyone was beginning to take flight with Monky Gyatso waiting for me.
"Do you wish for a ride, Aang? I know it can be quite exhausting gliding for prolonged periods of time." Asked Gyatso as he looked down at Aand, who lightly shook his head before leaping atop his glider, riding it like a surfboard.
"I appreciate the gesture, Monk Gyatso, but I'm fine." Said Aang softly with a shake of his head before flying into the sky with a gust of wind, causing Gyatso's Sky Bison to flap his tail and follow behind him while carrying nine extra students.
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"So that's the Eastern Air Temple. I quite understand Monky Gyatso's statement of calling it the most Spiritual of all temples." Muttered Aang in slight awe as he gazed upon the three mountain peaks in the distance, which had a smaller-sized Air Temple on each one.
As we neared the Eastern Air Temple, we headed towards the middle temple and gently landed on a large platform towards the top of the Temple, while in the distance, I saw an old woman with the markings of a Master.
"Welcome to the Eastern Air Temple, fellow Air Nomads." Said the Old woman with a cheerful smile as she gazed upon the numerous youthful children, noticing the eagerness within their eyes, which only caused her smile to widen.